First I want to say thank you for a job well done on the initial game. You definately earned your keep in that area.



I have a few issues I would like to point out about the disharmony expansion that I hope you can address.



I have done the majority of my playing up to this point under a cravers custom faction. Amongst my group of friends that played at a high level it was relatively agreed upon that this was the best faction at least for a 1v1 situation. It also seems to be the best singler performer on average of the AIs. Despite this, the cravers affinity has gotten serveral buffs, one of which is so powerful I am afraid it is broken. First, the -25% fleet upkeep cost in nice, but not too overpowering. What I am more concerned with is hive mind. After obtaining hive mind, my empire goes from it's typical near rebellious state to estastic at almost any tax level. It also creates a positive feedback loop (happiness lets taxes go up, that allows more ships to be supported, that increases happiness more, that lets taxes go up). I'm also worried the ammount was just off by a decimal place or something of that nature, such is the power of that single tech, I found it no longer neccessary to research on the left side of the tech tree. I had all the money and happiness I would ever need at that point.



Some more generally concerns...turns seem to take much longer to process than the original. This really bogs down larger games.



The AI seems very incapable of handling the new split space superiority / siege fleets, often sending siege fleets in unguarded to where they can easily be attacked, ranking up heroes etc. I don't know what can be done in this area, but it has effectively weakened the ability of the AI at higher levels.



Also the added effect of the new siege system is what I like to call "Endless Mop-up". Combined with the bonus I just mentioned, my superiority is assured relatively quickly...its only the new 10 turn per system takeover requirement, or the massing of large unreloadable transport fleets, combined with the slugish turns, that leads to a painfully slow path to the clearly inevitable victory.



Also, we discovered a method by which if you queued a empty hull, then modded it to have a colony module, you could still build colony ships while getting growth.



I don't have suggestions for these issues, except to point them out as issues. I feel the game really hasn't changed much, and the AI is just struggling with the increased complexity of the new invasion system. I've really enjoyed the game and hope you can address these issues in new patches. Thanks.